Popular Stories

Real Estate For Sale

AUSTRALIA'S $50 million broadband vision does not have Gympie in its sights.

The National Broadband Network Company said there was no timeframe for fibre rollout in areas like Gympie, and while it was expected the network would pass around 6000 premises a day at the height of the rollout, it could be almost a decade before the region would be connected.

Member for Wide Bay Warren Truss said this was a cruel hoax for Gympie's residents and businesses.

"No one in Wide Bay will be able to connect to the NBN fibre optic cable until the latter part of this decade," he said.

"The people of Wide Bay have to bear their share of the liability for the NBN, but no one is being connected to the high speed cable network. NBN wireless may be available to some, but so is Telstra 4G and other networks at comparable speed.

"At the same time as the NBN Co is duplicating fibre optic infrastructure in the cities, the government has done nothing to extend high speed broadband to areas that are under serviced."

Hardly a week goes by without Mr Truss's office receiving complaints about the unavailability of high speed broadband in the electorate.

Labor cancelled the previous Coalition Government's OPEL contract, which Mr Truss said would have already been delivering high speed broadband to the people of Wide Bay.

"The NBN is a scandal, and for the people of Wide Bay an empty sham."

"The Federal Government has announced that the NBN will begin construction to connect 3.5 million premises by 2015, but none of the places to be connected are in the Fraser Coast, South Burnett, Gympie, Cooloola Coast or Noosa areas."

NBN Co said it appreciated there was a significant need for improved broadband in many areas and promised that work was being carried out as quickly and efficiently as possible to build the network.

The spokeswoman said the fibre rollout sequence was determined based on a number of policy and engineering design principles. It also took into account the policy given to NBN Co by the Federal Government. This was to get a balance between regional and metro areas, to achieve a balance across the states and to complete Tasmania by 2015.

The plan is also based on the availability of infrastructure from Telstra - the exchanges and dark fibre links that provides a platform for NBN Co to build its fibre nodes and connect to points of interconnect.

"We appreciate there is strong support for the rollout in many areas and that there will be some disappointment from those who are not in the first three years," the NBN Co spokeswoman said.

"We will be updating the three-year rollout plan with a further year of rollout information next year."

NBN rollout

Where NBN is at with its fibre optic infrastructure.

Construction has commenced in Hervey Bay, Bagara and west Bundaberg.

Construction has commenced at new developments on the coast including at Doonella, Noosa Heads, Image Flat, Cutters Ridge and Kawana Waters.

Construction will commence within one year at Bundaberg, and within three years on parts of the Sunshine Coast south of Sunrise Beach.

The service is available at new developments at Maroochydore and Bli Bli.